Bethel School District hiring for 75 full-time positions

SPANAWAY, Wash.—In a time when many schools are laying off teachers due to budget cuts, one local district is doing the opposite. The Bethel School District in Pierce County announced in early August they are hiring for 75 new full-time positions for the 2019-2020 school year.

Among those positions: 53.8 will be Full Time Equivalency (FTE) Basic Education Teachers, 6.6 FTE Special Education Teachers and 2 FTE Maintenance Personnel.

According to a press release from the district, their ability to hire more teachers is in direct correlation with the growing population in the community.

“The dollars follow where the kids go,” said Superintendent Tom Seigel. “It all goes back to the fact that we are a growth district. We have more kids show up who need more teachers and we get more funding from the state to be able to do that.”

The district predicts they will add even more positions in the coming years as more and more people move to the area.

“If anybody out there knows a really good teacher that wants to come out this way where you can actually afford to buy a house or raise a family, and the quality of living here is pretty good, come on down, we want to hire you,” said Seigel.